OF STARTUPS FAIL DUE TO 'NO MARKET NEED'
They didn't have a business. They had a product nobody wanted. No Product-Market-Fit (PMF)
You can't raise money without PMF. You can't get customers without PMF.
Without PMF, you have NOTHING.
MARKET·PRODUCT·FIT. THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT PRODUCT EVERY STARTUP NEEDS.
THE AI PARADOX
PRODUCT = COMMODITIZED
- >AI coding assistants (Cursor, Claude)
- >No-code platforms
- >Copy-paste LLM outputs
DISTRIBUTION = LOCKED DOOR
- >Manual discovery
- >Intuition-based guesswork
- >Most get ZERO channels working
AI made building easy. Distribution is the locked door. You need the key.
THE FIRST PRODUCT EVERY STARTUP NEEDS
Not after the MVP. Not after the prototype. Before a single line of code is written.
INVESTORS
Ask: "Have you validated market need?"
No PMF = No funding
CUSTOMERS
Ask: "Does this solve my actual problem?"
Wrong product = No sales
ENGINEERS
Ask: "What are we building?"
No validated need = Wasted resources
THE TRUTH:
You don't have a business without this. You have a product idea (unvalidated), assumptions (untested), and hope (not a strategy).
42% die because they build before they validate.
THIEL'S LAW & THE CONTRARIAN TRUTH
"Most businesses get zero distribution channels to work: poor sales rather than bad product is the most common cause of failure."
What important truth do very few people agree with you on?"
THE OLD WAY - The Trap
THE INVERSION - The Secret
ANSWERING THE SEVEN QUESTIONS
MPF answers FOUR of the seven critical questions every startup must answer to be successful
MPF solves the 4 market-facing questions that determine if your distribution will work. Without these answers, you are flying blind.
THE AI TRAP: WHY SPEED KILLS
THE TRAP
THE HIDDEN COST: A typical startup burns $460k in year one. Skipping discovery doesn't save time—it wastes runway building the wrong thing.
THE MPF SOLUTION
THE TEAM
Founder + 9-agent expert system. Click any card for details.
Joel Smalley
Founder
I'm an entrepreneur just like you. I build digital systems to make you hyper-productive—in work and in your personal life. In a world of ever-increasing cost and competition, you simply have to do more with less, on your own. AI can boost you to 10X if you know how to use it properly. I do. And I make it accessible to those who don't. I built Market Product Fit because I need it for myself. Now, I'm sharing it with you.
What I Build:
- •Simple workflow automation
- •Completely autonomous digital twins
- •Tools I use myself every day to be 10X more productive
Who I Work With:
- •Entrepreneurs and founders
- •Owner-managed small and medium businesses
- •Anyone who values self-sovereignty and doing more with less
Tech Stack: Reasoning Models | Voice | Multimodal | Advanced RAG
DELIVERABLES
From vague assumptions to validated specifics
MONOPOLY
Target Market
DISTRIBUTION
Go-to-Market
SECRET
Value Proposition
TIMING
Market Readiness
Investors, customers, and engineers need these specific answers. MPF helps you find them.
THEY SELL TO MICROSOFT.
WE SELL TO THE NEXT MICROSOFT.
$120M+ raised in 18 months validates AI interviews work at enterprise scale.
| Company | Funding | Customers | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listen Labs | $96.6MSequoia | Microsoft, Sweetgreen, Robinhood | Fortune 500 research |
| Strella | $18MBessemer | Amazon, Duolingo, Chobani | Enterprise product |
| Conveo | $5.8MYC W24 | Unilever, P&G, Google, Sanofi | Global marketing |
WHAT THEY DO
- ✓Execute AI-moderated interviews at scale
- ✓Analyze and synthesize qualitative data
- ✓Generate reports and highlight reels
WHAT THEY DON'T DO
- ✗Strategic market selection
- ✗Distribution channel discovery
- ✗Answer Thiel's 7 questions
- ✗Tell you WHICH market to research
Enterprise validation = Startup de-risking.
Microsoft pays $100K+ for systematic discovery. You pay $5K for the same methodology.
THE MARKET
50 Million
new startups per year globally
150 Million
operating startups worldwide
42%
fail due to "no market need"
Sources: DemandSage, CB Insights, Limelight Digital
Our Focus
TAM: Software/tech startups
32% of 50M = 16M/year
Source: Embroker
Initial Market: US tech founders
US: 5.2M new business applications/year
US: 1.31M operating startups
Source: Commerce Institute, DemandSage
SOM Year 3
2,000 subscribers
$3.6M ARR at $150 ARPU
~0.15% of US operating startups
WHO NEEDS THIS FIRST?
PRODUCT-LED FOUNDERS
REALITY: Can code, but can't get customers.
THE FIX: Don't buy AWS credits first. Buy MPF.
Build it → Survive.
GTM SPECIALISTS
REALITY: Manual discovery is slow (4 clients/year).
THE FIX: Run 50 discoveries/year. Scale from consultant to high-volume agency.
THE NUMBERS:
78% of startups are self-funded. They can't afford a $150k GTM hire.
MPF gives them systematic discovery for $99-299/mo.
REVENUE MODEL
[FREE]
- ✓100 text messages
- ✓1 AI agent
[LIFESTYLE]
- ✓600 voice minutes
- ✓Unlimited agents
- ✓10 knowledge docs
[UNICORN]
- ✓2,500 voice minutes
- ✓Optional local deployment
- ✓Unlimited knowledge
Video Avatar Add-On
For Lab Assistant interview sessions with video presence:
- LIFESTYLE: +$60/mo (120 min)
- UNICORN: +$150/mo (500 min)
Unit Costs & Overage
Our Costs
- Voice: $0.10/min
- Video: +$0.20/min
Overage (at bundle rate)
- LIFESTYLE: $0.17/min voice, $0.50/min video
- UNICORN: $0.12/min voice, $0.30/min video
Gross Margin Range (50-100% utilization)
| Tier | Revenue | Cost Range | Margin Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| LIFESTYLE | $99 | $30–$60 | 39–70% |
| LIFESTYLE + Video | $159 | $42–$84 | 47–74% |
| UNICORN | $299 | $125–$250 | 16–58% |
| UNICORN + Video | $449 | $175–$350 | 22–61% |
Blended ARPU ~$150/mo | Expected lifetime 6 months | LTV ~$900 | Target CAC <$180
WHY NOW
Three forces converging in 2025
1. AI MATURITY
Reasoning models can now conduct nuanced customer interviews and synthesize patterns across conversations.
Voice AI costs dropped 90% since 2023
2. FOUNDER PAIN
AI coding tools mean more founders can build. But 42% still fail from "no market need" - the rate hasn't improved.
78% self-funded, can't afford GTM hires
3. NO SOLUTION EXISTS
Discovery is still manual: expensive hires / consultants or DIY guesswork. No systematic, affordable alternative.
$150k GTM hire vs $99-299/mo
The Thesis
"Poor sales rather than bad product is the most common cause of failure." — Peter Thiel
But sales fail when you're selling the wrong thing to the wrong people. Discovery comes first. MPF systematizes what founders skip, using AI that finally makes it affordable.
THE ASK: $500K SEED / 18 MONTHS RUNWAY
Allocation
Month 6
200 subs
$360k ARR, validated segment.
Month 12
800 subs
$1.4M ARR, validated channels.
Month 18
2,000 subs
$3.6M ARR, Series A ready.
Target: ~0.15% of 1.31M US operating startups
THE WINDOW IS OPEN (18-24 MONTHS)
TIMELINE
2023: Coding commoditised.
2024: Founders build fast and die fast.
NOW: Specialist AI (Reasoning/Voice) makes MPF possible.
"DISTRIBUTION EATS ENGINEERING FOR BREAKFAST."